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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25721284">Payment</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/reckless_indulgence/pseuds/reckless_indulgence'>reckless_indulgence</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>When the World Ends [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Original Work</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Age Difference, Apocalypse, Curses, Dark, Emotional Manipulation, Fantasy, Hurt No Comfort, Immortals, Intercrural Sex, M/M, Magic, Magical Bond, Nonbinary Character, Orgasm Denial, Original Fiction, Other, Rough Sex, Royalty, Series, Shapeshifting, Unhealthy Relationships</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-08-05</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-08-05</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 11:02:21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Explicit</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Rape/Non-Con, Underage</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,799</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25721284</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/reckless_indulgence/pseuds/reckless_indulgence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>The proud human nation of Mahzia falls, and the world falls with it. Crown Prince Solomon manages to escape, finding his way to safety with a stranger now cursed to protect and obey him. Nox is magically bound to follow the prince's orders, but when they realize that Solomon is desperate to please following his failure to protect his kingdom, it becomes all too easy to take advantage.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Original Male Character/Original Male Character, Original Male Character/Original Nonbinary Character</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>When the World Ends [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1865647</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>14</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Payment</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Solomon knew he should stay and fight when the lizardfolk forces reached the palace. He was already a young man, capable of fighting, and he was a <em> prince </em> of the Mahzian people. He should be fighting back, protecting his nation and making Eries proud.</p><p>He ran away.</p><p>There were catacombs beneath the palace, accessible by a hidden entrance in the king’s private office. They weren’t there as an escape route (the chosen rulers of the goddess of war’s nation never <em> ran) </em> but as a place to house royal secrets. Solomon had learned of its existence only a month ago when he turned sixteen, old enough to begin taking on responsibilities as the crown prince. He hadn’t seen much, but he knew there was a way out through the tunnels.</p><p>So much had happened since then. Solomon may have run away, but his father had decided that no one would rather destroy Mahzia than give it to the lizardfolk. He still didn’t know what exactly the king had done or <em> why, </em> but the world <em> ended. </em></p><p>Monsters, some he knew the names of and some he didn’t, roamed his nation and, as he would later find, most of the world. Solomon was on the run, and so, so many of his people were dead. He only survived because of Nox.</p><p>The prince couldn’t say what possessed him to put on the ring he had found in his scramble to escape the palace through the catacombs. He had stumbled in the semi-darkness of the tunnels, and when he landed on his hands and knees, the ring was just below his face, as if it was waiting for him. It was white gold inlaid with a pattern of violet stones that seemed to glow faintly. He picked it up and kept running.</p><p>It was only later that night, once he found his way out of the tunnels and into the forest closest to the capital city, that he realized it was still clutched tightly in his hand. He slipped it on without thinking, and it fit perfectly, unnaturally so. As soon as it was on him, the gems began to glow much more brightly, near blinding. When it faded, there was Nox, standing in front of him and introducing themself as his new servant.</p><p>“I am bound by the will of whoever wears my ring,” they said. Black hair fell almost to their shoulders, curling at the ends and falling into their face occasionally. Their eyes were the same color violet as the gemstones, so dark they were almost black, and their smile reminded him more of an animal baring its teeth than anything friendly. It may have been helped by the silvery scar crossing from their left temple to their right ear, barely missing both eyes over the bridge of their nose. It made them look dangerous, but the prince had a feeling they would make him just as nervous without it.</p><p>“Tell me who your enemies are, and I will tear them to pieces for you,” Nox said, and he was absolutely sure they meant it.</p><p>The first thing Solomon did was try to take the ring off. All it did was make his hand tingle with a feeling he would later learn to recognize as magic on his skin. He didn’t want a murderous, cursed servant, but there was nothing he could do to get rid of them.</p><p>It didn’t take long for Nox to realize that they didn’t want to be stuck with the young prince either. As the world ended and people scrambled to survive, Solomon was attacked more than once. The cursed spirit came to his rescue, but whether it was enemy lizardfolk warriors or his own desperate people, the prince refused to order their deaths. Nox could always scare them away, and Solomon didn’t see any reason to kill if he didn’t have to.</p><p>“I razed cities to the ground,” they told him, snarling with fury after he ordered them to release a terrified former invader. “I slaughtered entire armies, brought men and warriors and kings to their knees. You are <em> wasting my time. </em>”</p><p>Solomon was trembling as he forced himself to speak. “You have to do what I tell you,” he said, trying to convince himself it was true even as he spoke the words. “That’s how it works, isn’t it? I’m not going to let you kill for me, not <em> ever, </em> and… and you can’t do anything about it.”</p><p>Nox growled at him, and it didn’t sound at all human. “If all you will allow me to do is play the part of your <em> dog, </em> then fine<em>. </em> Have it your way.”</p><p>That was the day, a week after they met, that Solomon learned Nox could shapeshift. Even knowing they couldn’t hurt him, the sight of the black wolf, tall enough that their head reached his chest, made him tremble with instinctive fear. They followed him in that form for another week before finally changing back, and it was the first time the prince had ever felt so alone. On the sixth night, he broke down and slept pressed against the wolf’s side, craving some kind of comfort. On the morning of the seventh day, Nox had turned back, rolled their eyes at him, and accepted his desperate apology.</p><p>A month after the capital city fell, it became clear that this war wouldn’t be won by anyone from this world. His nation had fallen, and so had the rest of the world. Only one place that Solomon could find hadn’t been overrun by the monsters who took his nation. It was a forest that none of his people ever entered, a strange, unnamed place that seemed to be always full of fog and was made up of midnight blue trees with leaves that seemed to shine dully in the dim light. The further in he traveled, the more he thought he saw strange creatures in the dark, but Nox seemed so at home in this place that Solomon let himself relax too.</p><p>The other survivors were a surprise. They had wandered into the forest as he did and found a cave that led into an underground system of tunnels. It was a small group of about fifty people, mostly human and lizardfolk, though there were two dwarves and a few half-elves. Nox only showed themself in their wolf form around the survivors, and the wary group only let Solomon in after he proved to them that Nox was under his control. Finally, he could relax, secure in the knowledge that whatever magic protected this place would keep any monsters from reaching them.</p><p>They were given a small room to share (the dwarves had taken to adjusting the tunnels to give them more comfortable and private spaces), and the prince learned that his new servant could do more than just slaughter enemies. Nox produced a curtain to hang over the mouth of their cave for privacy and found the materials to create a makeshift bed. It was nothing like the beds of the palace, but it was far better than sleeping on the ground.</p><p>There was only one, of course, but it hadn’t seemed strange for Solomon to share a bed with Nox. They hadn’t known each other long, but after the first time that the prince slept on the wolf, they had shared space every night.</p><p>Here, there was enough space for Nox to have his own room, or they could have simply returned to whatever magical prison had been created for them to remain in when they were between masters or dismissed. But they never seemed to like going there, and in all honesty, Solomon was used to them now and craving the comfort after everything he had been through. They were warm, and they didn’t seem to mind him moving around at night. They never said a word about his nightmares. It made him comfortable.</p><p>Two months after finding the other survivors, Solomon was rethinking all of that as Nox’s arm wrapped around his waist, holding him close and pinning his arms to his sides as they covered his mouth with one hand. Their body was so hard against him, all lean muscle, and warmer than a human, taller than him by at least a foot. They smelled like something natural and fresh, running water or a fall breeze, with an edge of something metallic that he recognized too well.</p><p>“Have to be quiet now,” Nox murmured. They’re breath against his ear made him shiver. “You don’t want the others to hear, do you?” They laughed when he only trembled against them, shushing him quietly. “You know I can’t kill you, my master. I’m bound by your will, just as I served everyone else who wore the ring. My service to them was different, however.” They hummed thoughtfully. “Have you even considered what this is like for me? Those who came before you were men and warriors. I fought and killed for them, and I relished in it. But you. You are a <em> child</em>. A weak little human cub with a soft belly and no claws of his own. Do you know how frustrating it is to be such a powerful creature, a predator, bound in chains to a little boy who runs from conflict?”</p><p>Their voice had become a low growl. Solomon’s breath came in uneven gasps, warm behind the tight grip of his protector’s palm. He knew Nox couldn’t kill him, but trapped like this, he could do nothing to make them stop. How far could they go before the magic stopped them? The thought was too terrifying to dwell on.</p><p>Nox sighed. “A perfect example. I have never had a master who cried so often.” They nuzzled into his hair, and the anger had left their voice now. “There is one bright side to this <em> arrangement</em>. I have never been bound to someone quite so desirable. And the way you cry and bend for me so <em> easily… </em> My little prince, you should have been born a concubine instead. You would be better suited beneath me than stumbling through orders like a child playing at being in charge. You would certainly be of more use.”</p><p>The words cut him in a way he didn’t fully understand, confirming the thoughts he kept buried deep down, and Solomon bit back a sob. As muffled as his sounds were behind the beast’s hand, they were right that he didn’t want anyone else to overhear this. The people here tolerated him, at best, and if they saw him like this… He would have to endure their judgment and scorn for as long as they were able to survive together in this place.</p><p>“Now. You owe me a solution to my restlessness, wouldn’t you agree? You force me to hide in this hole in the ground and play babysitter while the world ends in carnage that I can't partake in, keeping me close but never allowing me to kill those who threaten you. The <em> least </em> you can do is let me have my way with you. Or am I only here as a tool to be used and tossed aside? Are you as cruel as your goddess?”</p><p>The last question had Solomon shaking his head fervently before he could even think. He would never say it aloud, but she was cruel and unfair, and he wouldn’t be like her. It wasn’t his fault that all of this was happening, but she would hold him responsible for his nation, and he had run away when the invaders came, abandoning it. The only responsibility he had left was to Nox, and he couldn’t fail again. This was his problem, whether he asked for it or not.</p><p>Slowly, Nox removed their hand, fingers sliding down over his jaw to wrap loosely around his throat. Solomon took a shuddering breath. “I didn’t think,” he said quietly, a helpless plea in his voice despite his decision to take responsibility. “I’m sorry, I… I want to repay you.”</p><p>“Make a deal with me.” Nox’s grip around his neck was light, their thumb moving in slow circles over the rapid fluttering of his pulse point. “Let me touch you how I like at night, in this bed. You owe me this.”</p><p>Solomon closed his eyes tightly. “Yes,” he said quietly. “I do owe you. But… they can’t know about this. If you do anything that will let them know, then - then I won’t let you touch me again.”</p><p>“Of course, my prince.”</p><p>He shivered as their hands moved over his body. Their touch was foreign, and he couldn’t relax as they pulled his shirt up and off. His shorts quickly followed, and he was pushed onto his back. Nox didn’t say a word as they leaned over him, pushing his thighs apart and lowering their mouth to his skin. Solomon clapped a hand over his own mouth, muffling his confused whimper as his cock began to stiffen.</p><p>It had been three months since he had left the palace. Three months of spending all of his time with Nox, waking or sleeping. In all that time, Solomon might not even have thought about sex at all if he hadn’t seen Nox bathe in human form so many times. They may not have had gender in the human sense, but their body was masculine and Solomon had seen the hard planes of muscle and thick cock that he barely dared to peek at, always blushing furiously when he caught a glimpse. He had never dared to admit it or even to think too often about it, but he had always known that men attracted him far more than women. No one had ever touched him like this, and now there was a person (feral and terrifying but so beautiful in their violence) between his legs.</p><p>Solomon could only muffle his moan as the beast licked his inner thighs. Their mouth was so <em> warm </em> and so <em> close </em>, and no one had ever touched him like this. Then they were pulling away again, pushing him back onto his side and crowding behind him.</p><p>“Cross your ankles,” they said.</p><p>Solomon obeyed immediately. He felt them move behind him again and then a strange sensation as something hard and warm pressed into the tight space between his thighs. When they began to move slowly in and out, he realized what was happening with a whine. It was a relief to realize that the beast wasn’t going to take him so intimately (at least not yet), but a new thought was occurring to him.</p><p>Their cock rubbed against his thighs, pulsing and hot and brushing up against his balls with every thrust. It wasn’t long before he was panting, drawing in heavy air behind his own hand this time. Nox’s arm was around his waist, holding him tightly to them but not <em> touching </em> him. Now his cock was hard and already aching, throbbing in time with their thrusts as he whimpered. It had been so long since he had touched himself, and his hand moved instinctively to wrap around his own erection.</p><p>It was a moment of blissful pleasure, one thrust into his own fingers that sent a shiver through his entire body, before Nox stopped him with a hand on his wrist.</p><p>“This is for me, my little prince,” Nox said, and there was a sweetness to his voice that the boy had never heard before. They held both his wrists in one of theirs, pressing his hands to his own chest. “You owe me pleasure, not the other way around. Now, be a good boy for me.”</p><p>Their thrusts were becoming harder, slamming against him as they took their pleasure from his body. As they growled against his hair, he shook with want. He cried as they came across his thighs, his cock so hard that every twitch seemed to tighten his entire lower body, painful in a way he had never experienced before.</p><p>He was crying so hard that Nox covered his mouth again to muffle the sound, lazily rubbing their cheek against his hair. They sighed in satisfaction, holding him close as if they didn’t know that every touch of their skin to his made his cock throb and drip, adding to the mess they had made of him.</p><p>“Relax,” Nox said, and yawned over his head. “Deep breaths now, little prince.” They released their hold over his mouth, humming in approval as he obeyed. “You’ve done so well. Get some rest now.”</p><p>They’re breathing deepened so quickly. Solomon lay in the tight grip of their arms, closing his eyes as his erection faded so slowly, leaving him unsatisfied and sticky with his own pre and Nox’s cum. It took him much longer to fall asleep.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>i hope the beginning isn't too boring. there is more coming in this series, and i intend to write a prequel that goes more in depth about their first few months together. there will also be other stories about these two and more with other characters in the same universe. please let me know what you think and point out any grammatical errors i may have missed, as i am editing this by myself.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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